Fourth year surprises?

[Estates4lyf]

Hi all
Long time lurker first time poster after a bit of advice please.

I own a Golf R estate which is about to tick over into four years old, and past the end of its standard warranty. Sue to misadventure with the Vauxhall Astra Twintop yonks ago I'm terrified of owning a car past the initial three year warranty period and regularly swap for now ones. But I like my R, and am wondering if I be brave and keep it.

My question - are there any common mishaps that can wrong on 4/5 year old cars which wouldn't be covered by an extended warranty? I know I need new rear wheels and the fronts were replaced last year, but I not sure what else might need doing. Pads, filters, other things - are there other unexpected bills I might be hit with or will a relatively calmly driven R ('relatively') be OK for the next 24 months?

All advice gratefully received please!

[Estates4lyf]

Thanks all. Understood it's not going to self combust but I'm starting from a base of zero knowledge so I genuinely am not sure if major replaceable components will start to fail at month 37. And considering I'll still be paying the same per month as when the car was within full warranty I'm a bit hesitant.

And of course the guy who pointed out I need new tyres and not wheels is of course correct. Except I have managed to prang the alloys quite a lot over the last three years, so some new wheels might not fully go amiss...

[Estates4lyf]

OverSteery said:

Estates4lyf said:

Thanks all. Understood it's not going to self combust but I'm starting from a base of zero knowledge so I genuinely am not sure if major replaceable components will start to fail at month 37. And considering I'll still be paying the same per month as when the car was within full warranty I'm a bit hesitant.

And of course the guy who pointed out I need new tyres and not wheels is of course correct. Except I have managed to prang the alloys quite a lot over the last three years, so some new wheels might not fully go amiss...

Is that the norm? I would expect you would pay less. Having said that, I've never leased (or whatever) a car, but then I've never owned a car as new as only 4 years (nor do I expect to).

It's a fair point but yes, VW has quoted the same price if I include the forty quid a month (or so) for the extended service package.

[Estates4lyf]

Sheepshanks said:

Can you get VW's "All In" package on Golf R? Think it's on offer at the moment.

You'd still have to pay for the wear and tear stuff though.

Yeah it's my plan to get this. I just honestly don't know what gets worn and torn in year four and five. So far I've only had to pay for tyres and was wondering what else might go.

[Estates4lyf]

SkodaIan said:

I assume the "paying the same monthly" comment means that the car was run from new on a PCP.

If so, years 4, 5 and 6 are going to be more expensive overall than years 1,2 and 3. If you're doing normal mileage years 4-6 are when the longer lasting consumables first need replacing (brake pads, discs etc.) You'll also probably be due a timing belt at the end of year 5. The car probably won't fail spectacularly, but those consumables will need replacing and aren't cheap even at local specialist rates. Bear in mind if you're bothered about appearance 4-5 years old is when things like stone chips start to be more noticeable and keeping on top of those can be surprisingly expensive too.

It's different when you own the car outright as the benefit of the depreciation slowing down starts to help, but I'd start by looking what you can get now for the same monthly cost as you've been paying. With uses prices still fairly inflated, your trade-in offer may be higher than the guaranteed future value on your current car.

I doubt you'd get another Golf R at the same monthly payment from new as car prices and interest rates have gone up a fair bit in the last few years, but it's worth looking at similar but slightly lower performance VAG cars (Golf GTI, Cupra Leon, Octavia vRS) which may well come in at a similar monthly price to what you've been paying. Then decide whether it's really worth paying more per month to drive around in an older, but faster car. I'd be surprised if the only car available on the same monthly payments is a base model 1.0TSI Golf or a Dacia Sandero.....

So this sums up my exact state basically. For the next few years I'll still be paying the finance payments plus on the hook for long term consumables which is why it's not my preferred option. But basically my other option is get an octavia vrs - which looks good - but comes with a deposit of several thousand pounds. Part of me feels like maybe this time I stick where I am and avoid the deposit.